A Palico's Dream
by Tidbit03
Summary: Hi! My name's Elaine! Sure, I'm a Palico, but that doesn't mean I can't be a Hunter, too! ... right?
1. Chapter 1

There is something to be said about this fantastic world we live in. A new World, a new hope, with new beasts and new friends to make. Even after my paws first touched down on the soft soil of this place, and I smelled the fresh new scents of the ancient forest that grew tall around our landing site, I could tell that this new start in a new place would be an adventure. So many places were laid out before us, from the tallest trees that overlooked the boggy ground to the wild, heat-heavy wastes of the desert. Even further still, the ground rose up and up, growing into fierce, colorful coral structures that reached high into the skies, providing footing that could just as easily crumble and toss you into the poisonous rot of the valley of death below. We even went so far as to visit a crystalline valley, with giant pillars of quartz reaching mountainous heights, and a landmass far over the ocean that lay under a heavy blanket of ice and snow. There was so much here to explore, and I was ready to mark the paths and lead the way into this new world.

My name is Elaine. I am the Palico partner to my Fifth-Fleet hunter, Eleanor. We've gone on a lot of adventures since coming to the New World, Astera, and we've seen so many monsters and places! I'm pretty good at assisting her on her hunts; there was this one time, when we were hunting this _huge _Odogaron, she stumbled and collapsed into one of the bushes in the pits of the Rotten Vale. But, before the beast could sink its fangs into her, I rushed in and rammed my Kitty-of-the-Valley Rod against its snout and paralyzed it! Eleanor, of course, would not let the opportunity go to waste. She chugged one of her Mega Potions, pulled out her Holy Sabers, and charged at the trembling Odogaron! The beast couldn't help but succumb to us, and the victory was ours!

But… this story isn't about her. This story is about me.

I love Eleanor, and I love helping her on her hunts. She always makes sure I have my best gear equipped, makes sure that I'm healthy enough to go, and she's always praising me for all my help and good work. But I don't want to be praised for just helping; I want to be praised for _leading _the hunt. Eleanor does good, quick work at slaying or capturing monsters, but for once, I'd like to be the one to do it. Every time I try to bring it up to her, ask if I could lead the hunt just _once _in our myriad of missions, something important would come up that would call our attention. An injured Aptonoth here, a savage Deviljho at the gates, some type of emergency that required immediate action. No sooner was she told was she was rushing off to remedy whatever the situation, her dual blades stationed on her back, leaving me to chase behind as fast as my paws could carry me.

Even my friends were able to go on adventures. They'd go on safaris, slay monsters and mine materials, and bring back their haul to their hunters with smiles on their faces. Tiger always seemed to manage to grab the best material, using his Plunderblade to tear into the monster's hide. And Zeus did wonders at collecting herbs and ores from various gathering places wherever he found himself. And then there was me, the healer, always attached to my Hunter's side with my Vigorwasp spray planted firmly in my paws. I didn't get to go on safaris like the others, only able to attend the hunt as a sidekick.

What kind of life was I living as just a sidekick?

Not a good one. And that's why it changes today. I'm putting my paw down, I'm going to ask her!

"Bahahaha!" Tiger's snort pulled me out of my inner memoir, reeling back on his stool to heartily clutch at his belly and guffaw. "You? A hunter? And what're you gonna do, huh?" His deep green eyes held mine for a grinning moment, before he extended his claw out and prodded my nose, "You don't know much about the Plunderblade like I do, and the only weapon you like to use is that damn lily on a stick."

"It paralyzes monsters, and I do recall a particular orange and black tabby using the same weapon at one point," I countered, crossing my paws over my puffed chest. "And even if I don't know anything about the Plunderblade, I'm quite proficient with the Flashfly cage." This won another bout of laughter from the sassy felyne, and I couldn't help but growl, "I am!"

"Yeah, sure, when you can place them right!" Tiger's roar of laughter was drawing the attention of the other Palicos in the felyne-only establishment. They raised brows of inquiry or twitched an ear at Tiger's uproarious noise, but otherwise, this was a common site in the Bistro. The chefs had all grown accustomed to the noise brought in by my group of pals, but even now they couldn't help but pay attention to Tiger's finding humor in my plight.

I pulled my own ears down over my face, whining as he continued on and on with his laughter. I could feel the scrutiny and curiosity in the gazes of those who were watching, some with doubt, some with amusement. I cast a glare off to Tiger, who was still lost in his bout of laughter, "Stop it, you're embarrassing me…"

"Tiger, I'm sure she could pull it off." Zeus came to my rescue, as he always does, and not a moment too soon. "She just needs a bit of practice, which _we _are going to give her." The dark blue furred Palico took a sip from his wooden mug, waiting for an answer from the orange and black cat.

Tiger's laughter subsided to a modest chuckle, waving his paws idly at us, "Yeah, yeah, I know. She can't get better if she doesn't practice, and who better to practice with than the masters?" He once again broke out into a wicked grin, rising from his seat to head towards the doors. Zeus rose to his feet and followed after, not pausing to make sure I was following. "Come on then, I promised Hiro I would practice with him, too, so this'll be killing two birds with one stone."

I dropped enough zenny on the tabletop to cover our meals and rushed off after Tiger, "Y'know, I can't keep paying for our meals like this!" My paws pushed at the doors to the Bistro, and I stepped out into hub. The bright sunlight of Astera greeted us, warming our fur and our faces with its welcoming heat. The hub was filled with the hustle and bustle of working men and women, and Palicos carrying goods across the slatted platform to their destinations. Most notably, a good deal of Palicos took their supplies to the Gathering Hub, probably to divvy it out amongst the hunters that made their lives traveling from one locale to the next. Eleanor and her hunter pals spent a lot of time up there, too, taking on investigations and quests in search of their next big hunt.

"Elaine!"

Speaking of Eleanor.

I turned towards the stairs that descended from the workshop, watching as the hunter in question cleared the last three steps in a single leap to quickly close the distance that stood between us. She wasn't the tallest of hunters, but she made up for it in muscle, which you couldn't tell she had if she ever took off that layered set of armor she always wore. She was quite the fan of the Gala suit the Handlers had given out during one of the many celebrations they always wanted to throw. The Astera sunlight reflected off the white fabric, giving me want to look away in case I'd be blinded by her radiance.

"Yes, Eleanor?" I looked after Tiger and Zeus instead, who had stopped at the base of the stairs she had descended from to wait for me. "Were we called on another hunt…?"

"Well, yes and no." Eleanor bent to one knee, offering me a sheepish smile as she removed her hat. She cast her greenish blue eyes towards where my felyne friends had gathered, and I could see a glint of curiosity through that shone through the veil of auburn hair that had fallen into her face. "The others have been called to a hunt, and they asked if I could help them. A Kushala Daora has been spotted in the forest, and it's going to be all hands on deck to take care of it. I hope you understand."

This is my chance.

"I do! Actually, Eleanor, I was wondering…"

I can prove myself to her.

"What is it, Elaine?"

My heart is pounding, can I ask her?

"I was wondering, if maybe on our next hunt…"

"Eleanor, we gotta go!" A man nearby shouted for her, waving his arm high overhead. How he could project his voice in that thick-layered cat mask is beyond me. Eleanor, heeding the call, relented to scratch my chin and ears, promising to hear my request upon her return. And then she was gone, swept up by the barnos carrier that would drop her off at one of the camps stationed in the Ancient Forest. My ears fell and I turned to catch up with my friends, resigning myself to sit back and learn for now until I could finally ask.

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"Elaine, what are you doing? Sink it in, in!"

I groaned, flopping backwards off of the canvas-covered barrels. "Tiger, I'm e_xhausted_. We've been at this for hours!" I tossed the weapon, a sharply bladed shuriken, back behind my head so it came to rest in the long grass. "Face it, I'm not gonna get any better at this stupid Plunderblade."

"Don't think like that, Elaine," Hiro crouched beside me, offering a paw to help me up off my back. I took his outstretched grip in mine and pulled myself slowly to my feet, only turning away to reach for my abandoned tool as he said, "You're still a lot better at it than I am. Maybe the Plunderblade just isn't for you." The violet and black furred felyne looked a bit sheepish whilst he turned away, retrieving his own shuriken from the nearby grass. "And maybe it's not right for me either."

"You two just haven't practiced enough with it. Trust me, your hunters will thank you when you get a good grip on it." Zeus approached with a pair of flasks, each filled to the rim with cool water. "Plus, it does a good bit of damage." He tilted his chin down at the weapons with a reassuring smile, then made his way towards the barrels to resituate the canvas, "And it drops a good deal of loot."

"I'm more interested in damage only, thanks." I grumbled, taking the flask and tipping it to my lips for a deep swig. I wasn't interested in getting more thanks from Eleanor. I wanted her to be proud of me, not thankful to me. "But none of our tools that the Guild created really let us do any damage. It's just a bunch of support nonsense that lets the Hunters take the glory. Sprays for when they fall, traps for immobilizing our quarry, a set of instruments that's supposed to boost their spirits? Come on, why can't _we _hunt?"

"Elaine, we're Palicos." Tiger's eyes traveled back to Zeus, matching the serious tone the dark furred felyne growled. "We are not meant to hunt. We are meant to aid the Hunters, not do their hunts for them. We are small, we are not built of muscle, and we are easy snacks for the beasts that they keep out of our homes. We do not hunt because we cannot."

"Yes. We. Can." I stomped my paws as I turned away from my friends, intent on heading back to the bazaar in Astera's trade yard. But I found myself stopping, faltering, the tiniest seed of doubt sprouting in my chest. I wanted to prove that Palicos could do just as much as any hunter could, but how? "…I won't take no for an answer, Zeus. I know we can do more than just be there as support. And I aim to prove it."

"Good luck to you, then." Zeus rumbled, resigning himself to an exasperated sigh. "You know where to find us if you need anything." I saw Tiger's curious, perhaps a bit concerned gaze focus on me, but he made no motion to follow me back to my Hunter's quarters.

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"We're Palicos," I muttered, kicking one of the many ornamental rugs that decorated Eleanor's quarters. This caught the attention of one of the coral birds that perched on the banister of the upper level. "We're an easy snack for the monsters." The words were vile on my tongue, tasting of doubt and disdain. "I am _not_ an easy snack." I made my way to the chest that was kept close to the fireplace, pushing to open the heavy top. The others were right, that Palico weapons weren't built like Hunter weapons… but who said I had to hunt monsters with my own weapons? Provided that Eleanor wasn't using them, I could borrow one of her Holy Saber duel blades. Just one would be enough for me to use.

My paw closed around the handle of not the Holy Sabers, but the Icefeather duel blades; her prize from defeating the icy elder dragon Velkhana. These would work just as well as the duel blades she always used. I pulled the long, white blade from the chest, inspecting its razor-sharp edge, then turned to the grand table that sat in the middle of the room. This should work just fine-

"Elaine, what are you doing?"

A shriek burst from my mouth as my eyes finally fell upon Eleanor, who's been seated on the couch by the fireplace silently watching. When did she get back from her Kushala Daora hunt? Her chin was resting on the back of her hand, curiosity plain on her expression. "Elaine, I never took you for a thief, but this is absolutely curious. May I ask what you're doing with your paws in my gear?"

This is it.

"Remember how earlier I wanted to ask you something?" My heart was pounding in my chest. Eleanor slowly nodded, affirming that she did remember. "Well, I still want to ask you, and I'm going to."

"Then ask."

Oh. She was getting impatient, though her expression still held that curiosity in her features. Carefully, I laid down her Icefeather duel blade and took two steps back from it, keeping my eyes downcast. "I, um… I was thinking… We always go on hunts, and I really like helping you. But-"

"But?"

"I want to lead a hunt!" I looked up now, catching the change in her expression to one of surprise. "I'm always helping you with yours, and I like helping you, but I want to be the one to, y'know. _Do _it." I could see her eyes narrowing, a thought crossing her mind. I felt my heart sinking. "I know I'm just a Palico. I'm _your _Palico. And you're amazing, and smart, and talented as a Hunter. But I want to be a good Hunter too!" My eyes lowered again to the blade on the ground, watching the light of the overhead chandelier flicker on snowy metal. "I don't want to just be the sidekick with the Vigorwasp spray and the Thunderbug cage. I'd like to be more of a help on the Hunt. I want to prove I can be a Hunter, too."

Silence. Pure, heavy, nerve wracking. I was too scared to look up and gauge the expression on her face. I could feel the cold sweat on my paw pads, feel the nerves pricking at my fur. I finally asked, and now all I could do was wait. She'd either accept, or outright refuse. What would happen if she said no? Would she toss me out? Request a different Palico? Never take me on another hunt with her again? What would I do if that happened? I couldn't stay here with Eleanor if she kicked me out, and I could only imagine the shame that would fall upon me from my other felyne comrades. I'd be an outcast in my own home, if I could even call it that after she kicks me out.

I saw her boots enter my vision. My heart leapt into my throat. Her white-gloved hand reached and picked up the blade by the hilt, her other hand palm-up against the underside of the blade. "Elaine… I had no idea you felt this way. Do you really feel like a sidekick?" My eyes finally rose from the floor to catch her soft smile. That expression, I had only seen it in the few times we interacted with the felynes out in the field. "Elaine, you're just as much a Hunter as I am. But if you want to lead a hunt to feel like one, then that's fine by me. We can even bring your other Palico friends, if that's what you want." Her hands held out the blade in her hands so that she presented the item to me, "But next time, you should say something before digging through my weapons. They're all very sharp and I wouldn't want you cutting your paws open."

Relief swept through me, warm and comforting. She understood. I threw myself into her arms, being careful to not launch myself onto the blade she held in her hands. "Thank you, thank you so much!" I nuzzled my face into her hair, grinning like an absolute fool. "I promise I'll show you I can hunt like you!" Hot tears rolled down my cheeks, relief flooding and washing away the previous fears that had plagued my mind. I could do it. I would show her what I'm capable of.

I'm a Hunter, too.


	2. Chapter 2

I had no idea how much research went into monster hunting. Not only did I have to narrow down what locale the monster liked to live in, what areas of said locale it occupied, what the monster ate and what it was weak to, but I also needed to know how it attacked and what I could do to combat it. For example, you can find the Pukei-Pukei in the northern portion of the Ancient Forest, and it was mostly herbivorous. Its attacks were poisonous, so you always needed to be sure to have antidotes on paw. But on the contrary, the Diablos could be found in the Wildspire Waste, and preferred the large cavern underneath the desert to hide in since it is sensitive to sound. The most dangerous part of this monster are the horns that loom heavy atop its skull. As for a third example, the Deviljho was a fearsome monster that could be found anywhere, no matter the locale, and its weak spot is on the hardest part of its body to reach. Its diet? Other monsters.

Eleanor told me I should narrow down to one monster and prepare accordingly. I know I shouldn't pick a monster too far out of my reach, like an elder dragon or something almost as strong, but I wanted to be sure that it wasn't a monster that would be too easy, like a Great Jagras. I bounced back and forth from monster to monster; Barroth, Beotodus, Kulu-Ya-Ku, Diablos, Lavasioth… there were so many monsters, with all sorts of weaknesses, I had to be careful which one I chose. However, my sights kept returning to one monster in particular.

The Barioth. It was a fearsome predator, with large amber fangs used for immobilizing its prey and tearing into flesh. Its wings were used for gliding and throwing up windstorms to confuse its targets so that it may better ambush it. Finally, its long tail provided balance and doubled as a weapon for bashing. Eleanor told me that whatever materials I got from the monsters I hunted, I could use to turn into a weapon set for myself, and the Blizzarioth weapon had piqued my interest. Though the Barioth was quick for its size, I was smaller and faster, and had more opportunity to get to its weak spots if I kept myself ahead of it. Sure, I could go for something slower like a Tobi-Kadachi, but the Barioth was the one that I believed was the right one.

Next, I had to figure out its weaknesses. Obviously, since it only resided in the Hoarfrost Reach, ice was a no-go. However, that didn't necessarily mean fire was its weakness. I opened Eleanor's Hunter Journal, where she keeps notes of all the monsters she's hunted since she first began her career, and flipped to the page I needed.

Barioth. A flying wyvern characterized by its fast, powerful attacks. This monster can inflict ice-blight to its prey and will pin down the unsuspecting victim if given the chance. Its recommended to bring in a fire or thunder-element weapon to fight the beast and is resistant to water and ice attacks. The Barioth's weak point is its head, where its tusks can be broken off. In addition, the wings and claws are breakable and the tail severable. Written in Eleanor's curly handwriting, it was clear just how much time she spent on researching each monster, learning what it needed and learning how to counter it. On the bottom of the page, faded from the wear of use, she had scribbled a note about breaking the Barioth's claws to slow it down on icier land.

Underneath her scribbled drawing of the monster, she had a tally. How many times she's slain the monster versus how many times she's captured it, and then a total tally of how many times she's encountered that monster. I was surprised to see the capture tally was much higher than the slain tally, and the number of times the monster was seen was even higher than the two tallies combined. So, she didn't hunt every monster she sees? That's… surprising. Were the other hunters like that, too? My paw brushed over the worn page, tapping the outline of the Barioth's sketched form. I didn't necessarily have to… _kill _it, right? I could just look at it, or maybe just capture it. However, that felt like I wasn't really _hunting _it.

If I was going to hunt a monster, I needed to do it right. I had to show that I had the heart to kill it, if need be.

"Have you decided?" Eleanor's voice pulled me from my reverie, announcing her presence as she came in from the Gathering Hub. Her eyes fell upon the mess that was the grand table, at my notes and drawings that were spread across the table top, at the crumbs from the bread and snacks that I had munched on while I was deep in thought, and finally at my mussy fur from raking thoughtful claws through it. "Well, it looks like you've been putting a lot of thought into this."

"I have. I don't get how you end up deciding on what monster to hunt first." I groaned and laid my chin on the edge of the table. "There's just so many of them, and there's so many things to think about. I don't want to do one of the easier monsters, but I don't want to hunt a monster out of my league, either. And it's just so hard to figure it out." Eleanor carefully stepped over the papers that lay on the floor, making sure not to crumple any of my research, and sat upon the stool next to mine. She then pulled some of my notes towards her so she could read what I had been working on. "Like how to counter them, how to avoid certain attacks, what works and doesn't work… How do you do it?"

"Well," She began, returning my notes to me, "I didn't start out with all these notes to begin with, Elaine. I learned them as I went, wrote my findings in this notebook while I was in the field, and by talking to other Hunters about the monsters they've fought. You don't just open a book and jot down the textbook example of the monster, you go out and you learn what makes that monster tic. Do you think I read a book about all these monsters?" Slowly, I shook my head no. "Exactly. But if you're still not sure what to hunt, why not take an expedition to the different areas? You can watch from a distance, talk to the felynes in the area, maybe figure out that way which one you want to hunt. How does that sound?"

An expedition didn't sound like a terrible idea. Go out and talk to the tailraiders, maybe chat with the endemic life… Perhaps Eleanor was right. But one big question remained. "Well, I guess that makes sense. But where would I go?" I closed Eleanor's notebook and passed it to her, "Because there's a lot of places that harbor monsters, and I won't see every single one of them in one outing."

"Well, you're not wrong." The huntress tapped her lips with her fingers, thinking, "Well, I've noticed while I'm out on expedition, the monsters tend to come or go around every fifteen minutes or so, in most cases, but sometimes they stick around for longer. It still doesn't guarantee you'll see all of the monsters if you stay for a full day and night, but at least you'll see a good portion of them, depending on the locale you choose."

"Okay, but _where_? _What _locale should I start with?" I put my paws on my head and whined, "I don't care about how many of them I see, I just don't know where to go." Eleanor didn't respond at first, carefully thinking over how she should answer. What had I said wrong? Frustration was fogging my head, but maybe I wasn't thinking on the right track. Would she scold me? Retract her approval to let me lead a hunt? But instead of words, she laid down her notebook in front of me and opened it up to the first page. On that piece of paper, and stretched onto the cover of the notebook, were topographies of the entire area of Astera, with identifying features highlighted in each area. I sat up, scanning the parchment, following Eleanor's finger as it traced the lines and shapes of the maps. I flipped a page or two, looking in at the maps for each habitat, debating and turning the thoughts of which place to go in my head. My eyes drifted over the pages, but always returned to the dusty white landscape to the northwest. "I think I'll try Hoarfrost. Not many monsters go in and out of that locale, so I can try to narrow it down from there."

"That sounds like a good idea," Eleanor's hand lifted from the pages to scratch behind my ears. "And I know you've got fur, but it still gets incredibly cold up there. You sure that's where you want to go?"

"I'm sure." I nodded slowly, though I was still a little unsure and hesitant. Going to Hoarfrost to aid Eleanor's hunt would be one thing; I knew what to expect, and she normally took the attention of the bigger beasts so I could take cover if need be. But I'd be going potentially on my own to face whatever dangers lurk there. The large monsters were one thing, but the cortos and wulgs were just as dangerous as the larger beasts that called the snowbanks home. "What should I pack?"

"Well, obviously, you will need your potions," Eleanor pushed a pencil and piece of blank paper towards me, "And since you'll be going to Hoarfrost, you'll need hot drinks. That's the very basics of what you need, so whatever else you take is up to you." I took the pencil and jotted down the note to find Potions and MegaPotions, then looked again at the map. "But when you pack, you do need to keep in mind whatever ailments can afflict you."

"Like poison, and ice-blight?" I scribbled antidotes and nullberries onto my list, "And if I start to feel a bit winded, I should take some rations or steaks." I think I was beginning to understand. I would need to take a supply of items to weather the environments for however long I end up out in the Reach. The upside was that I could collect needed items such as herbs and hot peppers while out in the field, and I could rest in one of the campsites overnight in the case I was too tired to keep going. Potions, blight-resistance, antidotes, what else could I need to take with me? "…And of course, I need to take a whetstone, right?"

"You are right, which brings me to the next thing you need to think about bringing." Eleanor rose from her seat and waltzed over to her gear chest. I turned in my seat as she used both her hands to lift the lid. "Now, since you chose Hoarfrost Reach, most of the monsters there are weak to fire-element weapons, which means a fire-based weapon is your best bet, other than dragon-element. So, I've looked through my gear, and I think I found a good weapon for you to use." She bent at the waist and reached inside, and from within, she withdrew a sharp yellow blade that was peppered with crimson Rathalos scales. I could see the Hunter's crest embedded within the scales, pressed in by the forge-master. "This is the inferno portion of my Wyvern Lover set. The other one inflicts poison, which I don't think will be useful to you." My eyes widened, watching Eleanor test a few swings and check the sharpness of the blade with her thumb, before she held the hilt out to me. "This blade should do you well."

This was happening. This was really happening. I hopped off the stool and crossed the distance to her, reaching up to take the blade from her. It was a bit heavier than Icefeather, but still a manageable weight for me to carry with relative ease. I tested the swing of it, first with one paw, then with two, and I couldn't help the shudder that crept up my spine when I heard the blade whistle whilst it cut through air. There weren't words to describe what I was feeling with that blade in my paws; pride? Excitement? Nervous? Powerful? It was a torrential mixture of emotions, and I couldn't pick just one to really feel. My words felt foreign on my tongue, not completely sure if I could form the words to express the complexity I was dwelling on, "Thank you. I'll take good care of it."

"You better." Eleanor's hand went to the top of my head once more, scratching my fur with her nails. Though she was smiling so warmly at me, I couldn't help but notice the little glimmer of worry that hid in her bluish eyes. "Is there anything else? Did you want to go by yourself or did you want to go with a team? I could go with you."

"I think I'll go on my own." Eleanor's face fell slightly at my answer, just the slightest bit. "But, if I need help, I can fire a flare gun, right?" This prompted a nod, but still she didn't seem to be fully relieved. I pulled her hand and held it in both of my paws, showing off the biggest smile I could manage, "I promise I'll be safe. After all, the best hunter in Astera is my partner. Surely I've learned something from watching you for so long."

This brought her expression back from where it had sunk to. A gentle snicker bubbled from someplace in her chest, before she broke into a grin and knelt before me, "I believe you. You're the smartest, bravest Palico I've ever met, and I know you'll be just fine. But please, be careful, and learn as much as you can, okay?" She waited until I nodded my affirmations to pull me close to her chest, holding me so tight that I wondered if she were trying to hold herself together, too. "If anything happens, and I mean _anything_, you get the hell out. Can you promise me that?"

"Eleanor, I promise you." I pressed my face into the crook of her neck, sinking into her warmth and affection, "I will be careful and keep my eyes and ears open to my surroundings. I promise that I will learn as much as I can, and that if I don't think I can handle it, I'll retreat." Her chest rose and fell with the sigh that followed, and her hold on me finally loosened enough that I could pull away. "Come on… Let's go eat before I head off. Please?"

"Alright, alright." Eleanor was finally back in good spirits. She rose to her feet and lifted me up onto her shoulder, "But first, we need to get you the rest of your gear! Let's pay a visit to Botanical Research and see if they have any extra herbs and honey laying around for you. Then we can get you a bag from the forge. _Then _we eat."

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I arrived in Hoarfrost Reach after a warm meal provided by Meowster Chef, who was tickled to learn that I was leading a hunt all by myself. He threw in a few extra ingredients, and halved the price of my meal, so that I could save my zenny for more gear and equipment later on. Upon arriving in the locale, I was pleased to see that the weather was clear, and tracks in the area provided me with the intel that a Beotodus, a Banbaro, and a Viper Tobi-Kadachi were prowling around. Everything was going fine; the wulgs had proven friendly, the Boaboas were minding their own business, to my surprise, and the wingdrakes were nowhere to be seen. Though, I was curious to know where they had gone. Maybe they went further into the icy wastes?

But when I ventured away from the woods and valleys, I found they weren't there, either. The icy mass was devoid of life; no penguins, no wingdrakes, nothing that could even give me a hint to where everything could be. I approached the ice's edge, looked over to the churning sea below; no penguins could be seen dipping between the waves, nor any cortos lunging for their next meal. I glanced again to the sky, then to the thinning pathways that led back to the forested areas, affirming that no, the endemic life was hiding. But what for?

The glacier began to tremble and shake. Something heavy must have stepped onto the glacier, possibly the Banbaro. I raised my nose, inhaled deep… but the Banbaro's scent was gone, as was the Beotodus's and the Kadachi's. It was replaced with three new ones, indistinguishable past the hunger for blood that lingered on their breaths. These three new beasts were ravenous and were on the prowl for their next meal.

I felt breath billow across the top of my head.

I heard the scrape of claws on ice.

I slowly turned my chin skywards, gazed past the hardened wing talons of the creature above me, and looked straight into its blazing blue eyes. Amber fangs glistened with saliva, the hunger of the Barioth above me becoming tangible as it crept closer to my hiding spot from its perch.

It had seen me, and I had seen it. My heart was thudding against my ribs, all too aware of the danger I now faced. I was on my own, on unsteady ground, against a monster that outweighed me by at least a thousand pounds. I wish I had taken up Eleanor's offer to go with me or had at least asked Tiger or Zeus to tag along, but it was too late now. The next best thing I could do was fire a flare and request back-up from Headquarters, but I would need to get away first. I took a pace to my left, the Barioth mirrored my movement and took a slow, weighted step in my direction. I glanced to the ice's edge, where I knew the waters mixed and crashed against icy chunks and stone below the surface. If I could manage to make a run for it, maybe, just maybe, I could leap over the edge and try to cling to the side of the glacier with my claws.

I had to move, quickly. I took another step to my left, the Barioth took another step towards me. One step after another, I moved backwards away from the ice's reprieve, away from the Barioth, closer to the hope of safety. Just a few more steps, and I could try to rush the edge and make it out from under the Barioth's jaws. I chanced another step, but the ice began to shake again, more now, tremors caused by heavy beasts stepping onto the icy plateau. The Barioth, interested now in the presence of competition, raised its head and looked first to its left, then its right, before continuing its advance in a more hurried pace.

I had to use its momentary distraction. I dashed off towards one of the paths that would take me to a much more open space, but footing could be treacherous if the monsters continued to slam around. If the shelves of ice break away, I could fall with them into the water below and risk death. However, the chances of being able to get away from the Barioth were greater if I could just manage to make it to the cave system on the other side. I reached into my bag, fumbled for the flare gun in one of the pockets, and yanked it out-

The Barioth charged me from behind, knocking the instrument from my hands and sending me rolling through the deep snow. The blow sent another shockwave through the glacier, and I heard the ice beneath us begin to crack. I scrambled through the snow, barely making it to my paws, but where was the flare gun? The rush of wind caught my attention before I could even chance a look at the displaced piles of snow, and I was flailing to grasp onto something, anything, whilst the Barioth raised a flurry of a tornado with its wings. I wasn't heavy enough, though; I was lifted into the air, sent several feet upwards, and the Barioth was looming below, ready to catch with its mouth agape.

I began my tumbling descent downwards. I shut my eyes against my inevitable end, hoped that when Eleanor came looking for my body, she'd find my gear instead of my soon to be mangled corpse. I could hear the breath of the monster below me, billowing up as I closed those precious few feet between us. I just hoped that my end would be quick-

But instead of a hot tongue, I hit snow and ice. The Barioth was knocked away from beneath me, and I had been sent plummeting into the snow, though not for long. A tail not belonging to the wintry beast smacked into my side, sending me skidding on my back towards the trembling ice shelves, and that's when I saw the orange, toothy maw of the Tigrex. It was invested in digging its teeth into the Barioth's shoulder, pushing and tumbling with the other and tossing up snowy debris with their claws. Now was the perfect chance to rush from the area; the two monsters were so preoccupied with their turf war, they wouldn't notice me leave, and I can find another flare at camp. I could barely bring myself to my paws when another chunk of snow flew from under their claws, striking me in the side, forcing me to stumble and fall again with a quiet cry.

Oh no.

I could feel their eyes. They remembered I was here. I looked up to see not one set, but two sets of piercing, slit eyes focused on my trembling form. It was all I could do to scoot back until I felt the edge of the glacier at my rear, a promise at an escape but not a good one. They prowled closer, licking their teeth, muscles bunched and primed to pounce in case I made any sudden move. They were only a number of yards away, so close that I could see the edges of the Tigrex's scales and the detail in the tufts of the Barioth's fur. I could see the blood dribbling from their wounds, dripping and staining the snow red with their heated anger and hunger. The scent of it was hanging heavy in the air, filling my nose with its overwhelming coppery stench.

The Barioth leapt towards me with wings and claws outstretched in a bout to keep me to itself, teeth snapping mere inches away from my arm, whilst the Tigrex lashed forward with its hardened claws to take me away from the snowy predator. I opted to make a mad dash for it, bounding between their legs with my heart set on the safety of the caves and crevices the icy glacier had to offer on the other side of the plateau. If I could get there, hide in one of the cracks, I could be okay. I kept an eye over my shoulder, leaping as high as I could when one swung heavy claws in an attempt to knock me back down. I could feel the cold sweep of wind across my face as I grew closer to the cave's mouth, feel the snow begin to thin under my rushing paws.

A chunk of packed snow knocked me head over heels, and my momentum sent me tumbling until I stopped in a heap just before safety's edge. I didn't have time to scramble and try for escape again before the monsters were on top of me, roaring and growling their starved frustrations. The Barioth's teeth closed around my body, forcing a whimper out of my aching lungs at the sharp edges of its amber fangs. I fought and I struggled as hard as I could to kick free from its mouth. I stomped at its soft palate, bit at its nose, but nothing was working to dislodge my body from its hold. The Tigrex, wanting a piece of the prey, nipped and tried pulling me by the tail out of the Barioth's grip, but the snowy leopard had me in a death grip. It would have to tear me apart to try to get me away from my captor.

This was how it would end, then. My mangled corpse and remnants of bones would be left behind under a blanket of snow. To think I had wanted to hunt this monster to begin with, a monster that so clearly was beyond my skill level that I should never have considered it in the first place. I cursed myself internally for being so blinded by my want to prove myself that I didn't consider that maybe, just maybe, I had signed my own death wish. To think that Eleanor had so much faith in me, only for me to prove that the world was right. Palicos were sidekicks never meant to be Hunters, for we were mere snacks to the creatures that the humans so expertly hunted. It was all I could do to play dead while the Barioth and Tigrex tossed me around back and forth, sending my bruised body screeching through snow and ice.

I came to rest on the ice shelf. I didn't bother to move, not even as the glacier rumbled and shook with their heavy footsteps and resumed turf war. I could see their claws flurrying through the air, wings tangling as their tails bashed into each other viciously. They'd keep fighting like that until they were worn out, then fight again over who gets to eat me.

I should have opted to go to the Ancient Forest. Hoarfrost Reach was cold, unforgivable, and dangerous. This was no place for a Palico.

Rather, there was no place for a Palico. My eyes fell upon the hilt of the Inferno piece to the Wyvern Lovers blade, sticking out from a mound of snow. It must have fallen off my back when I had been tossed around earlier. I sat up just enough to try to reach for it, reach for the remnant of the Hunter's dream I once had-

I heard it before it happened. A resounding crack in the ice's surface, splitting cleanly through the unstable glacier. The shelf I was on sunk a few feet, catching the attention of the quarreling beasts, but it was too late. Their prey was gone, fallen into the sea below and into a whirlpool of foam and fish. I was too tired to try to swim and fight the unrelenting currents that swirled and beat at my body, so I let it carry me instead to the depths.


	3. Chapter 3

"Eleanor, I'm sure she's fine, give her some credit!"

Eleanor paced the Gathering Hub, arms wrapped tightly around herself as she cast wary glances towards the snowy landscape of Seliana and the Hoarfrost Reach. She had been at this since the Palico had left, only growing more agitated as the time dragged on. "I know she's more than capable of taking care of herself, but I can't help but worry. She's on her own, it's cold out there, and the reports are saying that there's a Barioth, a Tigrex, and a Savage Deviljho out there. I can't go out and help her unless she fires a flare, but what if she can't? What if she's been incapacitated or worse?" Brandon, Eleanor's closest companion, was the victim of her worried ranting. He sat at one of the round tables on the viewing platform, his felyne head piece set to one side so that he could enjoy a tankard of mead while watching his friend pace back and forth. He took another long swig, just as she faced the snowscape for what must have been the tenth time, "But if I go out, and she's fine, she'll be crushed! She'll think that I think that she can't do it on her own, and what kind of Meowster does that make me!"

"Well, 'Meowster' Eleanor," Brandon smirked when she gave him an incredulous look, "What if you don't go? You stay here, you watch the trees for campfires and flares, and I go? Your Palico knows who I am, but it's not like you sent me, is it?" This changed her expression from worried to thoughtful, as though she were heavily considering this newfound option. Finally, she seemed to come to a conclusion, and gave him a look that he was all too familiar with. "Fine, yes, I'll go. I'll shoot a flare if anything bad happened, how does that sound?"

"That sounds great." Eleanor seemed to let out a breath of relief, but a short one. She was still heavily concerned, which was understandable. A Palico was a heavy responsibility and a companion for life, if treated right, and Eleanor took a huge leap when she let Elaine go out on her own on her first Hunt. It was only natural that she'd be nervous, scared even, for her Palico's well-being. "I'll pay for your meal before you go, and for the next three quests you go on. I really appreciate this, Brandon."

"Of course, of course." The fellow Hunter smiled and donned his felyne mask, rising from his seat. "Though, can Tiger stay here with you?"

"Yes, of course."

Now all that was left was to wait. Eleanor resumed her pacing, watching as Brandon departed on a wingdrake towards the icy trees below. Tiger stood on the very edge of the platform, wringing his paws methodically, watching with bated breath for some signal from his Meowster. Eleanor had gone on hunts with Tiger and Brandon before, and remembered that he had become close friends with Elaine, so he must be worried too. She hoped that for everyone's sake, Elaine was found in one piece. Time dragged on, minutes, hours, and they were joined by other Hunters and their Palicos, some with drinks, some with plates of food, and still more with hope and praise. Word had gotten around that Elaine was taking on her own Hunt for the first time, and they were all curious to see how this would turn out. Hiro and Zeus had joined Tiger on the platform, seated with their eyes focused on the terrain, as though they could sense what was down there in the snowbanks. A few Hunters sniggered that Eleanor should have never let Elaine go, and others still pressed that Palicos were not meant to be Hunters, but still more joined at the woman's side with hope for good news.

Nightfall came. The moon had just crested the horizon when the blaze of a flare shot from the forest and lit the sky with its light. The Gathering Hub had gone near silent, only the soft murmur of astonishment here and there whispering between bated breaths could be heard amongst the crowd of gathered Hunters. Eleanor's heart fell to the floor as she called in her own wingdrake, offering a ride to Tiger as Zeus and Hiro tagged along with their own Meowsters, Josiah and Louis. Had Brandon found Elaine? If he fired a flare, he must have found something worrying enough to bother calling Eleanor down, though she was terrified at what they might see once they were down there.

"Did anyone see what area that flare came from?" Louis called over the howl of wind, "They probably haven't moved from that spot, if we can find it."

"Looked to be from one of the lower sections of the area. Just beyond the valley outside the first camp." Josiah's booming voice answered, adjusting his hold on his wingdrake. "We should be there in a few minutes, if the drakes don't get spooked."

Eleanor said nothing. Her eyes were focused on the passing of the trees below, wishing that they could go faster than they were already going, though dreading the arrival. The wingdrakes dipped lower, weaving between the trees before diving low between the rocky, shoal cliffs that surrounded the gulley of the valley. A few popo and anteka hovered nearby, their eyes cast up to watch their descent, before resuming their curious circling of the bundle in the snow.

Brandon was knelt down, wrapped in his Direwolf suit to keep himself warm, while also chugging what must have been his fourth or fifth Warm Drink, judging by how long he had been in the Reach already. Held tightly in his arms was an indistinguishable something that was coated in ice and sleet, whatever it was supposed to be hidden in the chunks. Eleanor's feet, as soon as they were upon the ground, were moving towards him, her words puffing out on a cloud of breath, "What did you find, where is she?"

"I don't know what I found, but it's not her." He replied, holding out the icy piece. "It looks like there's a weapon inside it. I think we need to do a more thorough search of the area."

Eleanor's hands wrapped around the chunk, and too quickly she recognized the weight. One of her hands snapped to the knife she had sheathed on her belt, and she brought it round to hack at the chunk, desperate to prove that this couldn't be what she knew was in there. But the deeper the knife went, and the redder the ice grew as the Rathalos scales within became more apparent, the further her heart sank as her fears were confirmed. The blade she had given Elaine was here, but where was Elaine? And how did the weapon come to be like this?

"Eleanor, I'm sure she's okay. Scared, maybe, but okay. We'll find her." Brandon's hand reached out to rest atop the Wyvern blade, pushing so that Eleanor was forced to lay it down in the snow. "We need to find her. What do you want us to do?"

"I-I don't know. I just want to find her." She took a deep, sharp breath of the snowy air, then blew it out. Breathe. They needed to find Elaine, and to do that, they needed to keep their heads. She looked from one Hunter to the next, and at the Palicos who were inspecting the ice-coated weapon in the snow. They must not be able to smell her off the frozen item. "… We should split up. Louis, Hiro, can you two search the cave systems? She could have tucked herself into the crags or perhaps washed up in the pool where the glow worms are. Josiah, you and Zeus search the highlands, try to avoid the Legiana if you can. Brandon, you and Tiger should search the valleys. I don't think the wulgs will give you much trouble, but watch for the Banbaro if it shows up. I'll search the glacier after I visit the Boaboas."

"If you're visiting them, you should take one of our Palicos." Louis interjected with a worried frown, "Take Hiro. I can manage the caves on my own." Eleanor's eyes swept across to the violet and noir felyne, and she nodded. He was right; she would need a translator for the information she needed. "I'll fire off a flare if I find anything and head to the closest camp."

"That should be what any of us do if we find anything." Josiah nodded his agreement, pulling out his flare gun, "We fire a flare, then we head to camp one. That way we all know where we're going. Agreed?" He waited until they had each pulled out their guns to set their flare colors; Brandon's was orange, Louis had purple, Josiah set his to blue, and Eleanor changed her flare pigment to pink. Once the items were put away once more, he raised a hand and turned on his heel to begin towards the northern stretches of the Hoarfrost Reach, "Then I'll see you lot later." The Hunter raised two fingers to his mouth to whistle loudly, a signal the Tailraiders of the area had come to recognize as a raider ride call. A pack of wulgs came running from the other side of the valley, hurtling through the snow until they came to a stop at their group. Each of the creatures sniffled and snorted at the ice chunk Eleanor had hacked away at, before shaking out their fur and awaiting their rider's orders.

Brandon hefted himself onto one such wulg, waving a hand farewell in similar fashion, then finally Louis left, too. Eleanor's hand strayed to the head of her own wulg, stroking it behind the ears and around the chin before finally climbing onto its back. "To the hot springs, then. Come on, Hiro, hop on."

"Why the hot springs?" The felyne hopped up behind her, holding onto the edges of her coat with his paws. The wulg, feeling their combined weight on its back, set into motion and began its trek through the heavy blankets of snow. "Aren't the Boaboas up on the glaciers?"

"The Boaboa base is only accessible via wingdrake, and the only wingdrakes that know how to get there are the ones by the hot springs." Eleanor answered, leaning forward as the Wulg began its journey through the snow. "The Boaboas you're thinking of are not as friendly. Elaine and I managed to come to an agreement with the Boaboa Tribe that makes their home over by camp one, and we share some of our hunts with them. I just hope they saw her at some point."

"I'm sure at least one of them did." Hiro's mewl didn't do much to reassure her, but it was the best he could do. The rest of the ride was spent in quiet, the only sound that of the wulg's paws slapping the permafrost. Eleanor's eyes were trained on the sky, watching, waiting for signs that they were close and that there were wingdrakes to take. Only when the wulg stopped at the water's edge and the pearlspring macaques scattered to the higher rocks did Eleanor realize that they had reached the spring, and not a single wingdrake was in sight. Was this how it was when Elaine came through? There was no way to reach the Boaboa camp, then.

Well, at least hope wasn't completely lost. A few Boaboas, not of the tribe that she had become friends with, had risen from the banks of snow when they had seen Eleanor enter the area. They had already begun to grow agitated; clubs were being rattled and shaken in threatening postures, spears were being prepped to be thrown, and the four of them were chattering and shrieking in their trademark speech. Eleanor slowly dismounted from the wulg, watching the group warily as she raised her hands level with her eyes. "Hey, hey… I don't mean you harm."

One of them, a taller Boaboa with thick, ruby colored antlers, pranced forward and held out its club, growling and chattering. Hiro, having followed Eleanor's lead, was at her side in a few moments to offer a translation. "Then what are you doing in our turf? You're friends with that goodie-goodie tribe, but that does not make you welcome with us." The Boaboa growled and rattled its club once more, joined now by a Boaboa with a larger set of violet antlers, the leading scout of the group.

"My Palico, my felyne. Elaine." Eleanor kept her gaze trained on the leader of the group, deciding to try to reason with it. This had the Boaboa's clicking and chattering with a more curious pitch. "She came to the Reach on a hunt, and she's gone missing. We're trying to find her."

"You say 'your' felyne, but you were not with her? No wonder she has not come home." The leading Boaboa prattled whilst it lowered its club. Its massive head tilted to one side, "If you were my hunter, I would not come back to one so irresponsible." Hiro growled at the end of the phrase but said nothing against them.

"She wanted to hunt on her own," Eleanor's counter encouraged an eruption of shrieking and cackling from the furred creatures. She felt her face heat up with mixed emotions; rage, embarrassment, and an overwhelming sense of regret. "Stop it! Have you seen her?" The leading tribe creature stifled its snickering whilst the other three continued with their shenanigans. Eleanor was losing patience, hope, and daylight, and was wasting precious time that she could be spending searching the glacier. She had to really push just how important finding her was to these creatures. "She's white, with calico patches of light and dark purple, and grey eyes. She was wearing Paolumu armor when she came out here. If any of you saw her, please, just let me know."

Finally, a shimmer of hope. The Boaboas giggled but rubbed their chins and heads in deep thought, until one finally spoke up, "One of our scouts saw her earlier, climbing the glacier." The violet antlered Boaboa gestured towards the area, "That's if she's still up there." The other Boaboas had begun to gather themselves once more, finding the hysterics less funny now that they had laughed it all out. They clustered around their leader and made soft, chirping sounds, then bound off into the depths of snow in pursuit of some bigger catch than what they were hoping to find there. Their leader bowed its head to the pair of them, then followed after its comrades, leaving Eleanor and Hiro to climb back onto the wulg.

Their new destination set, they began to make their way towards the icy slopes, but not before a violet flare shot straight up into the evening sky. Its light shed over the snow and rained down upon Eleanor and Hiro with its telltale news. Something had been found, whether it be Elaine or another one of her belongings was yet to be discovered, but the flare meant she needed to hurry back. She heeled the wulg and turned it around, sending it towards the predetermined camp with urgency.

She could feel her heart pulsing in her veins. Elaine was all that she had, and she had let the cat come out on her own to the coldest, most unforgiving hold in all of Astera. If she had succumbed to the elements or the monsters, or if she was simply missing altogether with no hope of being found, what did that make Eleanor? Maybe the Boaboas were right; Elaine wouldn't want to return to a Master as bad as her. She couldn't even ensure that Elaine felt like she was worth more than some supporting role, and now because she had felt so inclined to prove her worth, she may have lost her forever. No, she had to be fine… right?

They couldn't get to the camp fast enough. Eleanor was leaping off of the beast as soon as they had reached the fallen tree that lay across the path, using her momentum to slide under the thick pine and roll back to her feet as soon as she was on the other side. She couldn't see any other footprints ahead of her, so she must be the first one back, since she was the closest one to the campsite. She looked back behind her, past Hiro as he scrabbled under the tree and made for the hot pepper bush, but no one was coming behind him either.

Had he misfired? There's no way, those guns were finicky with how they were shot. He must still be on his way, right? She went back to the fallen tree, squinting into the distance where the other areas fed into the forested valley, but saw nothing other than the popo that grazed on the brush and wulgs stalking around the snowbanks.

The sound of a wingdrake behind her had Eleanor spinning. Josiah and Brandon were dropping in from above, looks of worry on their faces. Josiah staggered as he hit the ground, but Brandon was already jogging the short distance to stop just before her, "Is he not here?" Brandon asked, adjusting his clutch claw on his arm. He took a long look around, then back at her, "We saw the flare."

"No, he's not here." She answered, returning her watchful gaze to the pathway she had come from. "I haven't been here long, just got finished talking to the Boaboas when I saw the flare. I rushed all the way here, but I haven't seen him yet."

"It's unusual for him to take so long." Josiah's soft voice had everyone turning their eyes to the path. "He would have dropped in by wingdrake by now."

"…Unless he's carrying something." Eleanor's whisper could barely be heard above the howling wind, and the realization hit the group harder than a Kirin's thunderbolt. When a Hunter carries something big and heavy, like an egg or a stone, it's hard to balance it in the hand and do other tasks, so raider rides and wingdrake travel was a no go. And since Louis was the one who fired the flare, and is also the one taking so long to arrive-

Eleanor had enough of waiting.

Despite Josiah's and Brandon's exasperated attempts to keep her in the camp, she chugged another hot drink and set out back the way she came, whistling as soon as she was able for a wulg to rush to her side. It leapt over a nearby embankment and kept in pace with her so that she could swing herself onto its back. Its nose dipped down and picked up Louis's scent from earlier tracks, hissed, and veered off towards the caves, wasting no time on monster tracks or nearby plants. The beast and its rider dipped into the open maw of the glacial caves, threading through the paths past paratoads and poison puffs, and deeper into the cold, smooth crevices of the ice. Eleanor recognized this path, knew that the more unstable parts of the glacier were well above their heads now, and that the duffel penguin summit was just down another series of paths.

As the two went deeper into the glacier, the temperature kept dropping, and with nighttime coming it would only get colder. "Louis!" She hollered down the halls of the caves, wincing as her voice echoed and shook the icicles hung precariously above. "Louis, are you down here?" The narrow path wound down along the side of an ice shelf that stretched upwards, curled, and shaped the cracked ceiling overhead. At the bottom of the path, it opened up to a snowy, icy valley that was the final resting place of an old, decrepit ship. It bore the flag of the first fleet and remnants of its journey through the oceans and ice, as well as newer, fresher water stains from the tide having just left. Heavy on its masts and ropes were layers of thick, dripping ice, left there by the eons of rain and ocean water washing over the wooden grave. What caught her eye, though, was the faint glow of firelight from behind the ship, closer to where the ice and snow gave way to the inflow of ocean water.

Eleanor slid off the wulg and picked her way down the slope, approaching until she rounded behind the ship and came in full view of the miniature campsite. Sitting aside the fire was Louis, fiddling with his gear and spent flare gun, his hat removed from his head and resting aside him on top of what had to be the rest of his gear. At her approach, his head lifted from his current task to fix a pleasantly surprised stare upon her, "You saw my flare?"

"Yeah, we did." She murmured, stopping just outside the campfire's glow. Her eyes slid around the area again, double-checking and triple-checking that she hadn't missed anything. No monsters to worry about, just the ocean's tide as it echoed and moaned against the icy walls. "When you didn't come back to camp, we started to worry."

Louis's mouth grimaced as he looked away, fixated now on the gear at his side. His hand rested atop his hat, thumbing the brim before he gingerly lifted the item back onto his head, "I couldn't travel back by wingdrake or wulg."

Elaine.

Underneath Louis's helm was Elaine. Cold, unresponsive, but breathing Elaine. She looked awful; her fur was clumped and matted from freeze-dried ocean water, her ear had been nicked, and her nose was frosted over and showing signs of frostbite, as were each and every one of her toes. How long had she been down here? Eleanor went to her knees and scooped the frozen felyne into her arms, cradling her frozen body close to her chest, so close that she hoped maybe if she held on tight enough, she'd warm up and wake up. She didn't feel the tears on her cheeks until she realized the top of her Palico's head was being rained on by the heavy droplets, and only then did she allow herself to openly weep with her face buried in Elaine's cold fur.

She was alive. She could just barely feel the felyne's heart beating against hers, and her chest inflate and deflate with each labored breath she took. Now all that was left was to take her back to camp and get her home. As carefully as she could, she reached into her satchel and produced a hot drink from its recesses, and tipped the rim to Elaine's lips, "Let's get you home, then."

"I would have started back, but I figured it would be better to warm her up sooner than later." Louis admitted as he rose to his feet, offering an assistive hand to Eleanor. "Hence the flare and the campfire."

She took his hand and stood slowly, feeling her knees and hips creak from the cold. "Thank you. I mean it. I really owe you." The Hunter tipped his hat and gestured for the pathway up, then followed behind with his hand on the hilt of his longsword. If anything came their way, he'd take care of it if he could help it.

Thankfully, they were able to get to the closest camp without too much issue. Eleanor's own flare was produced from her back, and fired into the dark sky above while she made Elaine as comfortable as she could within the tent. The felyne had shown no signs of waking, but at least she was warming up, though Eleanor worried about the frostbite that nipped at the exposed bits of Eleanor's body. As for her armor, it had been soaked and torn apart, no longer fit to be worn on any escapade after this one. The cap was essentially gone, and the coat did little to protect her body from the elements now that claws had torn it to literal shreds. Eleanor just had to know what monster did this to her, and why Elaine didn't think to run if she couldn't handle it?

Brandon's head poked in through the tent flap, just when Eleanor was about to duck back out. "How is she?" He whispered, allowing the Hunter space to slip out into the open air. He followed behind her to the canteen area of the camp, awaiting an answer, but when she failed to produce one, he pressed harder, "Is she okay?"

"She will be." Eleanor muttered, taking a seat at one of the makeshift stone tables. "She's cold and frostbit… but I think she'll be okay." Her eyes strayed back to the tent, watching it for an intense few moments before allowing her head to rest on her folded arms. "At least, I hope she will be."

"She will." Brandon leaned on the table, facing away from her to look out over the cave below them. He could see the wulgs sleeping below and hear the rattling of a wooden cart as members from the guild in Seliana closed in on their location. Quietly, he went to the edge of the camp, watching as the bundled-up guild members pushed their cart towards them with haste, led along by a switch-axe wielding Josiah. "Eleanor, the guild is here. Let's get Elaine down there and back home."

The Hunter picked her head up slowly, rubbing the exhaustion from her eyes, then nodded. Yes, they all needed to get back to Seliana, Elaine especially, so that she could begin her recovery. Eleanor would come back and deal with Elaine's lost belongings later.


	4. Chapter 4

Man, my head hurts…

My vision was blurry, my eyes cracking open to the bright white light of sunlight on snow. Though I recognized the light, I still felt warm and bundled rather than the icy numbness I should be feeling. I must be in the medical ward in Seliana, then… No surprise there. I couldn't remember much past the turf war between the two gargantuan beasts that had knocked me to the sea. What I could remember was depth, harsh and heavy, icy in its embrace as the waves crashed me upon the pebble shoals below the glacier. What happened after that? How long was I gone?

I chanced a slow look around my surroundings. A room with plain beige walls, a single bedside table with a lotus flower laid upon the wood, and open white curtains framed the closed window. On the other side of the room, opposite of my bed, sat two oak chairs against the wall with another small table set between them. One was empty except for a faded red cushion, and the other occupied by a familiar violet and black felyne, seemingly dozing with his paws crossed over his chest. For once, Hiro wasn't wearing his heavy armor that his Meowster usually has him wear, instead wearing his standard leather vest and some bandages on his forearms. I sat up slowly, the bed creaking with my weight, though the movement sent a spark of pain channeling up my spine and into my skull. I gingerly lifted a paw to feel for the bandages that wrapped my head, only to find my paws bandaged in similar, tight fashion.

What happened to me?

"You're awake?" Hiro's voice surprised me. I looked up, catching sight of his tired eyes. "That's good. Glad to see you're okay."

"How long have I been out for?" My voice croaked my concern, my throat scratchy with disuse. The other felyne hopped off his seat and approached, extending a paw to help me off the bed. I struggled with moving the blankets off my legs, but in the end had to wait for Hiro's un-bandaged paws to move the article so that I may slide off the bed, "And how did I get back here?"

"My meowster found you." He admitted after a moment's quiet, letting me use his arm and shoulder for balance. "Meowster Eleanor got worried when you hadn't come back in a while. So meowster Brandon went out to look around, then shot a flare for meowsters Josiah, Eleanor, and Louis to join him." He adjusted his hold on me so that he could reach for the door, pushing it open so that we could step out into the hallway. "They were gone for about two hours, and when they came back, you were being carted straight to the medical ward. You've been out for about two days… we only just convinced meowster Eleanor to go eat and rest."

Straight to the medical ward. I had been in such bad shape that I had gone straight into treatment. "And… how long was I out there? In the Hoarfrost Reach?" Hiro helped me through the door and into the hallway, hobbling past two other rooms before making a turn to the left down another, shorter hall. I could smell the familiar scents of stew and meat, leading me to believe we were headed for the dining hall. Sure enough, at the end of the hall, a room opened up before us with an array of tables and kitchen staff setting food down or cleaning empty tables. On the far end of the room, I could see the counter that separated the cooks from the ill, and the door that felynes and humans alike passed through with trays or rags.

"You were out there for about a day and a half." Hiro's voice brought me back to our journey across the wooden floors. We walked towards an open table, not seated at by other palicos, hunters, or civilians in varying state of injury or age. "Though I don't know how much of that was spent under the glacier."

"I was out for maybe about half an hour before it happened." I eased myself onto the bench, grimacing as I accidentally sat on my partially numb tail. I glanced down at it, eying the clumpy patches, and took note that I needed to groom at some point. A nurse, a ginger tabby felyne in a white tunic, came by with a tray laden with braised steak, roasted potatoes, and an array of greens. In her other paw, a mug with steaming tea. Both were placed in front of me with utmost care, the platter barely rattling as it came to rest on the table. "There was a Barioth. I thought I could get away from it, but then there was a Tigrex, too."

Hiro frowned, fiddling with his bandage, clearly unsure of what he could say, "That must have been rough. Is that how you lost your weapon?"

"Yeah. The Barioth knocked me over, and I lost it in the snow." My eyes were stinging, the need to cry rivaled by the exhaustion and ache in my skull. "The Tigrex and the Barioth were fighting over me. When I finally got away from them, the glacier cracked, and I fell." I looked at my paws, bandaged, heavy. "I tried to hold onto the ice. I tried to keep from falling too far, but I couldn't. I hit the water. It was so cold."

A fresh wave swept over me. Depth. Harsh, icy, heavy. The swirling fish and penguins circling my sinking body. The light fading as I went further and further down.

I'll never be a hunter. I left my dreams at the bottom of the sea to drown, left them there to lie with the shellfish and other arctic life that could survive there in that darkness, that knew of their purpose and didn't stray from it. I could never have taken on that Barioth on my own. Even Eleanor struggled against the winged beast, so how could I have hoped to take that thing down? I hadn't even so much as touched it, and I was left scrabbling for cover. I hadn't succeeded against it the first time, and I'm sure I wouldn't last long against it if I were to go back.

"I'm sorry that happened to you." Hiro's voice was soft, his paw reaching for my fork to scoop up a bite. He held it up for me, prompting me to eat it. "But at least you're safe now… right?"

I didn't answer. I only took a meager bite of the food handed to me.

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.

I spent another day in the ward before I was released to go home with Eleanor, under strict orders to stay home and rest. The after affects of the frostbite still stung my toes and paws, but I could at least use them to eat and walk now. Eleanor had been overjoyed to see me awake at last… but her smile faded when I failed to reciprocate a smile of my own. She lifted me into her arms, bundled my bruised body into the wraps of a blanket, and carried me off to the Hunter's Villa further up Seliana's mountainside, where all the hunters and their Palicos resided if they weren't stationed in Astera.

Eleanor had been one of the more sought-after hunters, so she had managed to snag a residence in both locales. It was a modestly sized home though not modest in furnishings, with cream-colored furniture and puffy pink pillows, accented by the lovely golden chandeliers that lit the marble tiles under the pink faux fur rugs. On the walls, paintings of monsters and a few of my own drawings were draped over the rosewood, amongst the little decorative china plates on elaborate sconces. For such a fierce, dedicated hunter, Eleanor's taste in décor was that of someone who'd much rather snuggle the monsters than kill them. The evidence to concrete that notion was the little plush Paolumu doll that lay on her king-sized bed.

She set me down on the couch, on the end closest to the lit fireplace so that I could feel its warmth. The little Shephard hares that Eleanor liked to keep hopped their way over, their curiosity piqued by the arrival of the head of household, but more-so interested in the one whom had been missing for however many days. I stretched my paws down for them to sniff and rub against, feeling a little warmer that the small creatures had missed me. But Eleanor, nor I, said anything for a long while after we had come to both settle ourselves on the couch. What was there to say? I'm sorry I lost your weapon? I'm sorry I couldn't prove that I am just as much a hunter as you?

"I'm sorry."

She spoke first. I felt her hand gently lay upon my paw, stroking my fur with an idle thumb. I kept my silvery stare upon the hares on the floor, refusing to meet eyes that I knew held sympathetic compassion. I didn't want to see it. I didn't want to see forgiveness for my failures. I instead bit my tongue, looked for anything else that could keep my eyes from straying to her face. I locked eyes with the monster statue that was situated on one of the shelves of Eleanor's dresser, finding its mocking stare more bearable.

"Elaine." She tried again. I felt my tears well up in my eyes. "Please, look at me."

I didn't have a choice now. Her hand was at my chin, gently turning my face to hers. She saw my misery just as it spilled down my face. Immediately, I was swept back into her arms, held close to her warmth, felt her heartbeat against my chest. I couldn't help the hiccup and sob that finally tore from my throat, "I'm so sorry, I'm so, so sorry. I thought I could do it. I thought I was ready. I didn't even strike first, and it was over before it had even begun."

The pain was fresh, new, throbbing through my chest and pouring out from my eyes. The roar of my blood in my ears was as loud as the ocean waves, louder than the territorial cries of the monsters that had almost stolen my fate. I could see their teeth, their fur shining in the late afternoon sun that had pounded down on the Hoarfrost Reach. I could still feel their breath hot on my neck and smell the stench of their blood as they tore into each other over my demise. I clutched at her clothes with stinging paws, shaking her with what little might I had left, "Eleanor, I couldn't do it. I can't. I'm no hunter."

"Elaine-"

"I was an idiot to think that I could ever be one!" I shouted over her before she could have the chance to stop me, "I was blinded by how easy you make it look! You hunters, you _humans_, are so well designed for the hunter's call that a felyne like me could never even hope to scratch the strength one needs to fight those beasts." I swiped an angry paw over my cheek, flicking away the wetness. "… Who was I fooling? 'I can be a hunter, too.'"

"Elaine…!"

"I'm a _sidekick_, Eleanor!" I pushed against her chest now, unwrapping her arms from my rigid frame. "My kind, us felynes, your Palicos, we're only at your side to make your hunts easier for you! We heal you, we carve items and collect herbs for you to use, we distract the monsters all so that you can get a better angle with your blade!" Anger and hurt was swirling in my head, forcing my tears to keep spilling down my cheeks. I could feel them pooling on my chin, dripping and soaking my fur on my chest and legs as they fell in heavy droplets, "We're not hunters. Not when there are people bigger and stronger than felynes that can handle a blade far better than what our paws can."

Eleanor was silent. She didn't say anything for a long time. She wouldn't even look me in the eye. Slowly, my paws unclenched from the fabric of her tunic, and I laid my paws into my lap. "I'll replace your weapon… I just don't think I can hunt anymore, Eleanor. I'm no good." She didn't try to stop me as I slid from the couch, pausing there on the floor only for a short moment before making a quick beeline to my room. I cast one last look at my downtrodden meowster before closing the door, barring me from her sympathy or any rebuttal she could come up with.

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"She hasn't come out of her room since I brought her home." Eleanor was seated in the Gathering Hub, hands wrapped around a mug of ale that she took heavy swigs from every now and then. "I don't know what to do. She was crying, and then she was mad, and crying, and now she doesn't want to hunt at all." At the table, Brandon and Louis were listening with measured curiosity, each with their own tankards but not as heavily invested in the contents. "She wouldn't even wait long enough for me to tell her I had the sword she lost."

"She's hurting, just give her time," Louis, of course, responded with a gentle solution. "Just reassure her that you're there when she needs you, and that you need her just as much. She'll come around."

"See, that's where the issue is." Eleanor took another hard swig of her ale, feeling its heat flush her cheeks and belly as she mounted up her explanation, "She said that Palicos are sidekicks. That we need them just so they can make our hunts easier for us. She knows I need her."

"Well, they do make our hunts easier." Brandon quipped. This earned him a smack from Eleanor and a muted chuckle from Louis. "What do you want me to say? She's right. Palicos were originally intentioned to be sidekicks, or hunting aides rather. They're meant to aide our hunts, not lead them! Don't get me wrong, I think its cool that she wanted to try being a Hunter herself, but let's be real. Felynes just don't have what it takes to be Hunters."

"What about Meowster Chef?" Louis interjected, referring to the leading Canteen Chef in Astera. The image of the bulky, oversized felyne wielding any sort of weapon was not hard to picture. "You can't tell me that Meowster Chef can't handle his own out there."

"Meowster Chef is a freak of nature, being that big, but that's not the point here." Brandon sighed heavily with a scowl, "Look at Tiger, or Hiro. They're a bit bigger than the average felyne, but at the tip of their ears, they only measure up to about our hips. They've got paws adapted for running, not wielding. It only makes sense for them to stay on the sides, where they won't get hurt, while battering us with Vigorwasp Sprays or using… what was it again, a Thunderbug Cage?"

"Don't forget about the Coral Drum," Louis nodded sagely.

"While I understand your point," Eleanor's face was flushed, whether it be from the ale or anger, it couldn't be discerned, "felynes have every right just as we do to be hunters! It's not the size or the species that makes a hunter, its their guts to go through with it. And the fact that you can't see that, given you're a Meowster yourself-"

"Alright, alright, easy!" Louis quickly flattened a hand to her shoulder before the woman could rise any further from her seat. "We get it. Let's get back on topic. You said Elaine's locked herself in her room, right?" Eleanor pouted in her seat, but nodded as she sipped her ale yet again. Gently, he took the mug from her hands and placed it on the other side of the table, "Well, what if we send Hiro and Tiger over? Have them say hi? I don't think they've seen each other since she was still in the ward."

"That's not a bad idea." Eleanor murmured, looking forlornly at the mug now just out of reach.

"That's a great idea," Brandon grinned. "Tiger's been on me about asking how she's doing. He can go figure it out himself." This earned him a look from the other two hunters, to which he waved it away, "And! He can bring Sorrow along."

"Sorrow?" This had her raising a brow. "She's got enough sorrow on her plate right now."

"No, no! Sorrow!" Brandon insisted. "Didn't the Commander meet with you?" Eleanor shook her head slowly, to which he tsk'd, "That's right, you were in the ward and at home with Elaine all week. Silly me. We got a new shipment of Hunters in, and the Commander wanted to try something new. He's assigned each new Hunter with an experienced one. I got Sophie and her Palico Sorrow."

"And I got Kieth and his Palico Waddles." Louis moved Eleanor's mug just a little further away from it as she reached for it. "You should talk to the Commander on your way home. Your assigned newbie has probably been waiting at Grandmeow's Canteen this whole week while waiting for you."

Embarrassment flooded her expression. "I had no idea that we had a new fleet in… Do you think bringing home a new Hunter and his Palico will help the situation at all…?" She pursed her lips, worrying at them with her teeth, "If I have a new Hunter to train, then that's less time I'll be spending in the home looking after her-"

"Or more time she's spending out of her room helping you train the new guys." Louis smiled, "If these Hunters are new, then they'll need all the training they can get. And if that's the case, you'll need Elaine to help train their Palico. Maybe even push that Palicos can be Hunters too. That way, not only are you helping the next generation of monster hunters, you're re-invigorating Elaine as you do it and encouraging the Palicos of the new fleet to try to be hunters, too."

"And if it doesn't work out that way, then we'll figure something else out." Brandon added with a careful smile. There was a moment of quiet as their new plan concreted itself, and Eleanor's worried frown relaxed as the hope of Elaine's depression subsiding became just a little bit more in reach. Brandon stood from the table with a stretch and an extended hand, "Come on, let's go pick up your new roommate."


End file.
